Much of what the government can do would not cost much: for example, passing laws to promote stability in teachers' careers and improve training standards, and encouraging and disseminating good practice, whether in teaching methods or school management.

ECONOMIST: Start at the beginning

David Reynolds, chairman of the government's numeracy taskforce, says that the teaching methods he prescribes are ones that are common both in those British schools which get good inspection reports and in countries whose pupils perform best in international tests.

ECONOMIST: New skool rules, OK? | The